


What's A Fox?

by Wicked_Sonniku



Series: Remember? [1]
Category: Zootopia (2016)
Genre: Best Friends, Cute, Fluff, School, Sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-08
Updated: 2016-06-08
Packaged: 2018-07-11 09:40:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,083
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7042876
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wicked_Sonniku/pseuds/Wicked_Sonniku
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Samantha didn't really ever look into why people hated foxes so much.....</p>
            </blockquote>





	What's A Fox?

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first part in a series documenting a friend Nick had in school. It's set slightly after the whole muzzle situation. 
> 
> P.S  
> (I know this has probably been done a thousand times by now, but I think it's cute and I'm doin it!)

Samantha rubs the pads of her paws against the somewhat scratchy stuff that covered the chair she was sitting in. It feels good.........but not good. Sort of like a painful massage. She kinda likes it.

And besides......the sound it's making is drowning out the ticking of that old clock on the wall that sounds like a bomb about to go off any second. 

She rubs a little harder, moving so her legs are underneath her. The material of the chair is starting to hurt her somewhat sensitive pads, but it's the only thing she can ever do in here. The adults all call this horrible place the "registration room".

Samantha calls it "Boring Central".

 She props her head in her other hand, smiling at her own joke.

Her ears prick up when she heard the shift of her mother's dress, and when she turns she sees her mother looking at her with a stern glare.

"Sam, what did I tell you about that? You'll bleed, like last time. Stop it."

She reaches across and places Sam's hand in her lap. The little hyena pouts. The same pout that she's designed to melt the heart of her somewhat iron-chested mom. She flattens her ears to her head to add to the effect. "But  _mommm!"_ She whines, a lilt to her voice. "It's boring here! We've been in this stinky room forever!" And it  _does_ stink. It smells like old cheese. 

"Keep your voice down!" Her mother hisses, glancing over at the she-goat behind the dull receptionist's desk up front, who had looked up sharply from her computer when she heard Samantha's complaint. The goat purses her lips, which are coated with a thick layer of lipstick. The same sticky red stuff from FurFrou's boutique. She remembers her friend Alexis wearing it once on a dare. 

The goat taps an orange lacquered hoof on her desk, narrowing her eyes slightly. "Mrs.....Nidae? We're ready for you now." Her voice is high and clipped, with the tiniest bit of a sneer in it. 

See? She'd even helped. 

Samantha's mother stands, looking slightly embarrassed. "Erm...yes." She strides to the front and up to the desk, straightening the pleats in her skirt on the way.

The goat looks her up and down, like she did when they first walked in. She clicks on a pen and picks up a clipboard. 

"Previous place of schooling?"

"Um....Sahara Square."

The goat writes something down.

"Name of student?"

"Samantha Nidae."

"Predator or prey?"

".....Predator." 

 

The goat clears her throat and slides a piece of paper and a pen over.

"All we need is a signature and for you to pick a teacher. Then this little....ordeal will be over. For all of us." 

 

****************

 

"Now, I hope you'll all treat our newest family member  _nicely._ Alright?"

"Yes, Mrs. Lutri!" Twenty little voices chirp. 

"Good. Take your seat, Ms. Nidae," the old otter says, rolling up the sleeves of her ancient pink sweater that keep falling over her tiny paws. When the small canine doesn't move, she smiles, revealing a set of white and slightly pointy teeth. "Don't be scared, sweetie. We're all nice."

Samantha holds her head up high. "I'm not scared of  _anything_ ," she says indignantly. But that's not true. She's scared. Scared silly. She wants to run our of the school yelping. She looks out at her classmates, and the pairs of eyes staring back creeps her out. This isn't anything like her old school back in Sahara Square. There, everybody looked...more or less the same. Here....everyone and everything was different. There are sheep and leopards and wolves and......one......

Fox.

 It's a little boy fox. He's sitting near the corner. All alone. His ears are down, and his arms are crossed under his desk. She twitches her nose. That's weird. Why is he all by himself? Every other kid in class is sitting with their desk moved close to another, and they're all smiling. Not him. He's frowning, and his eyes are fixed on the floor. His fluffy, bottle brush red tail is tucked firmly between his legs, and his eyes are brimming with tears. What's wrong with him? Is he OK?

She's so intent on staring at the little fox that she doesn't realize her teacher behind her, and jumps when she feels a gentle push on her backbone. Mrs. Lutri is looking at her, her huge glasses making her look like a concerned dragonfly. "Are you alright, honey?"

Samantha nods, pulling away from the ancient otter. "I'm fine."

Her teacher smiles yet again. She must really like smiling. "Alright. Take your seat, then." She gestures to the numerous empty seats around the room. Samantha immediately spots one. It's right next to the sad fox. It looks sad too, like everybody ignores and avoids it. She heads over, using her skirt to wipe off the dust on the seat before sitting. The fox looks up a tiny bit when she sits, his green eyes roving over her. She notices it and smiles at him.

"Hi."

He ducks his head back down. 

******

All through the lesson she watches him, never failing to smile at him when she catches him stealing a glance in her direction. He never holds her glance for long, but for the few seconds he does, he looks at her with a strange look on his muzzle, like he can't figure her out. 

When it's recess time, all the children are lined up, and led out to the playground. The other kids all buddy up and head to various places, whether the swing or the jungle gym. The fox, however, heads straight to a bench, and sits drawing his legs up to his chest and burying his face in his knees. Samantha scales the jungle gym, pretending like she's not watching his every move. She moves to the swings, acting like she's not waiting to see him move, or speak, or  _something._ She starts talking to a young elephant girl on the nearest swing. 

"Sooo," the elephant giggles, twirling her trunk. "I saw you sit next to Nick. What's that about?" 

"Nick? You mean...the fox?"

As soon as the word "fox" leaves her mouth, the elephant cringes super dramatically and laughs, pulling the hem of her pink shirt over her mouth like Samantha sneezed or something. 

"Ew, ew  _ew!_ Don't even  _say_ it!"

"Um....say what?"

" _Fox_ , silly. I _hate_ being in the same class with one, don't you?" 

......."Huh?"     

 

 

 

 


End file.
